Three Russian Aircraft Intercepted over the Baltic Sea

Three Russian military aircraft flying without transponder signals have been intercepted in international airspace over the Baltic Sea.

The German Air Force has stated on Twitter that Germany and the United Kingdom sent Eurofighter jets to identify two Su-27 fighters and one Il-20 aircraft. The air force shared several photos of the Russian aircraft in flight.

Aufklärungsflieger abgefangen. 🇩🇪 und 🇬🇧 #Eurofighter wurden alarmiert, um 3 Militärmaschinen zu identifizieren. Die zwei SU-27 Flanker und eine IL-20 aus 🇷🇺 flogen erneut ohne Transpondersignal im int. Luftraum über der Ostsee. #SecuringTheSkies #VAPB @NATO @GermanyNATO… pic.twitter.com/sOY4CPkrbe

— Team Luftwaffe (@Team_Luftwaffe) April 26, 2023

Earlier this month, Germany handed over responsibility for NATO's Baltic Air Policing mission to the UK. 

NATO allies are involved in air defence as Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia do not have their own fighter jets.

Russian military aircraft regularly fly from the Russian mainland to Kaliningrad Oblast and back, making such interceptions in the region fairly routine (Ukr).

For instance, on 17 April, the UK and German air forces jointly intercepted three Russian aircraft (Ukr) flying over the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic Sea.